Suddenly, a badge on a smartphone screen can be puzzling, especially if you don't remember how it got there. On Xiaomi, Redmi and POCO devices, there is often an icon of a person or a person in a circle, which is an indicator of active accessibility features. This interface element is designed to help people with disabilities, but for the average user it becomes an unnecessary visual noise that covers part of the display.
This icon is most often randomly created when a finger touches certain button combinations or a voice assistant is activated. There are many hidden settings in MIUI and the new HyperOS shell that are easy to run by inadvertently. To get the desktop clean and get rid of the distraction, you need to do a few simple actions in the settings menu.
In this article, we will go into detail about all the ways to turn off the obtrusive indicator. We will look at both standard methods through the menu and deeper settings for advanced users, you will learn why this feature is even turned on and how to prevent it from being activated again in the future.
Reasons for the availability indicator on MIUI
The main reason for the icon is the activation of Special Features services. The Android system that Xiaomi runs on has a built-in mechanism to help people with visual or motor impairments. When you accidentally activate one of these features, the system automatically displays a floating shortcut to quickly access control.
Often users run this mode themselves, trying to zoom in or resize the font. In the display settings menu, there is an option called "Increase" that, when triple tapped on the screen, zooms in and displays the appropriate icon. This is not a bug, but a regular behavior by the operating system, which, however, can be annoying when used frequently.
Another reason could be voice control or TalkBack, which requires constant visual confirmation of its operation, so the icon stays on the screen until the service is completely deactivated, and understanding the source of the problem helps to find a solution faster in the maze of Redmi or POCO menus.
Disconnection through the menu settings of special features
The most reliable and correct way to remove the icon is to disable it through the system menu, so you don't need third-party apps or complex code manipulation, but you just need to follow a consistent setup path, which can vary slightly depending on the firmware version.
To start, open the Settings app on your device. Find the Additional section or go straight to the Features section. In newer versions of HyperOS, this section may be called Advanced Settings or be entered into a separate menu at the bottom of the options list.
☑️ Shutdown algorithm
Inside the menu, find the Visual or General tab, and that's where the switch that displays the floating button hides, and then you find the Special Features Shortcut, and you put the slider in the "Off" position, and then the icon will disappear immediately.
⚠️ Warning: If the icon is still missing after the switch is turned off, try restarting the device. Sometimes Android system services require restarting to apply changes to the interface.
Managing TalkBack and Voice Input
TalkBack is designed for visually impaired users and voices all the actions on the screen. If you have this mode activated, the icon can be part of the speech synthesizer control interface. Disabling TalkBack often solves the problem of unnecessary icons.
To check the status of this feature, go to the Settings → Special Opportunities → Vision menu. Here you will see a list of active services. If TalkBack is enabled, the system will prompt you to confirm the disconnection, as this is a critical feature for some users.
Also worth checking is the Google Assistant settings. Sometimes the special feature icon is confused with the voice assistant call button. Go to Google's settings, select "Assistant" and check the "Phone" section. Make sure that the "Access with Voice Match" option or similar features don't conflict with system shortcuts.
Why is TalkBack hard to turn off?
In some cases, the icon may be associated with Voice Access, a separate service that allows you to control your phone with voice commands, and if you don't need it, you should also turn it off in the special features section by finding the appropriate item in the list of downloaded services.
Set up screen enlargement and zoom
One of the most common reasons for a magnifier or man icon is the zoom function, which allows you to temporarily zoom in on the screen with a triple touch, which is convenient for reading small text, but a permanent icon on the screen interferes with normal navigation.
To disable this feature, go to Settings → Additional → Features → Increase. Here you will see several control options. You need to remove the tick from the "Increase shortcut" or completely disable the feature if you do not use it.
There's also a status bar zoom mode that adds a zoom button to the notification curtain. While it's not a floating icon on the desktop, it also applies to accessibility tools. Check if this mode is activated if you want to clear the interface completely of the redundant elements.
| Function | Location on the menu | Impact on the interface |
|---|---|---|
| Special Opportunity Label | Special Opportunities → Visual Opportunities | Floating button on the full screen |
| Increase (Zoom) | Special capabilities → Increase | Magnifier icon |
| TalkBack | Special capabilities → Vision. | Selection frame and settings icon |
| Voice control | Special capabilities → Management | Microphone or wave icon |
It's important to distinguish between system magnification and magnification in specific applications, such as in the Gallery or the Browser. System settings take precedence and can overlap application interfaces, creating the illusion of a bug.
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Tip: If you are afraid to accidentally turn these features back on, after disabling the shortcut, you can also turn off the “Fast Turn on” option, which activates the functions when you press the volume buttons.
Resetting special features settings
If the standard switch switching doesn't work and the icon returns after the reboot, there may have been a software failure, in which case the effective method is to reset the special features settings to factory settings, and this won't affect your personal data, photos or contacts.
To perform the reset, go to Settings → Advanced Settings → Restore and Reset. Select Reset. In the menu that opens, look for the Reset All Settings option. Don't confuse this with a full reset to factory settings!
This operation will return all system settings, including network settings, sound and special features, to the original state. After the reboot, the phone will behave as new in terms of configuration, but will save all installed applications and user files.
⚠️ Warning: Before performing any reset action, make sure you choose Settings Reset rather than All Content Cleanup.
After reset, recheck the special features menu. Chances are all switches will be turned off and the icon will disappear.If the problem persists even after resetting, this may indicate a conflict of the installed third-party application or a deeper firmware error.
Using ADB to remove system shortcuts
For advanced users who are not afraid to work with debugging, there is a way to force the system components to turn off through the computer. Using the ADB interface (Android Debug Bridge) allows you to manage hidden settings that are not available in the regular menu.
First, activate Developer Mode. Go to Settings → About Phone and quickly press 7-10 times on MIUI Version or OS Version. After the message "You became a developer" appears, go to Advanced Settings → For Developers and turn on USB Debugging.
adb shell pm disable-user --user 0 com.android.settings.accessibilityHowever, deactivating the availability module completely can lead to unstable system operation, so it is better to use commands to disable specific services. For example, you can try to hide an overlay through window settings, but this requires root rights, which are difficult to obtain on modern Xiaomi devices and can violate the warranty.
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Using ADB is a powerful tool, but risky for beginners. A team error can lead to blocking individual phone features, so only use this method if you are confident in your actions.
A safer option through ADB — This is a change in global settings. accessibility_display_magnification_enabled 0 It's forced to turn off the zoom, and it can help if the GUI is buggy and doesn't save the changes.
Frequent problems and their solution
Even after completing all the instructions, users may encounter nuances, such as the icon disappearing and reappearing, often due to MIUI system updates that reset some user preferences or add new accessibility features by default.
Another problem is phantom presses, where if the smartphone screen is damaged or poorly calibrated, it can activate accessibility features on its own, so you should check the screen for defects through the engineering menu by typing the code ##6484## in the phone app.
Also worth mentioning is the conflict with launcher apps: If you use a third-party shell instead of the standard one, it may misinterpret system overlays.Try temporarily to return to Xiaomi's standard launcher to see if the icon disappears.